Skinning knife with removable blade

ABSTRACT

A skinning knife includes a handle and a blade carrier coupled to the handle, the blade carrier including a mount having a mounting surface, a boss extending outward from the mounting surface, and a spring including a front portion, a middle portion, and a rear portion. The skinning knife also includes a blade including a sharpened edge, a body, and a slot formed through the body, where the slot extends in a longitudinal direction from a front end to a rear end and includes a narrow portion of a first width and a wide portion of a second width greater than the first width. The blade is releaseably secured to the blade carrier by interaction between the boss and the spring of the blade carrier and the slot of the blade.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/302,985, filed Jun. 12, 2014, which claims the benefit of andpriority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/834,694, filed Jun. 13,2013, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

BACKGROUND

Skinning an animal promptly after a kill is an important and taxing taskfor a hunter. The fascia that connects the skin to the muscle throughoutthe carcass is abrasive and wears down the blade edge quickly and makesthe job of skinning tedious and tiring. A replaceable blade knifeensures that a hunter's energy is spent on skinning and not sharpeningthe blade of his knife.

SUMMARY

One embodiment of the invention relates to a skinning knife including ahandle, a blade carrier coupled to the handle, the blade carrierincluding a mount having a mounting surface, a boss extending outwardfrom the mounting surface, and a spring including a front portion, amiddle portion, and a rear portion, the front portion secured to themount proximate a front end of the spring. The middle portion is bentoutward from the front portion and the rear portion, and the rearportion includes a free end of the spring movable relative to the mount.The skinning knife also includes a blade including a sharpened edge, abody, and a slot formed through the body, where the slot extends in alongitudinal direction from a front end to a rear end and includes anarrow portion of a first width and a wide portion of a second widthgreater than the first width. The narrow portion includes the front endof the slot and the wide portion includes the rear end of the slot. Theblade is releaseably secured to the blade carrier by interaction betweenthe boss and the spring of the blade carrier and the slot of the blade.

Alternative exemplary embodiments relate to other features andcombinations of features as may be generally recited in the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will become more fully understood from the followingdetailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a knife with a replaceable blade,according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section view of the knife of FIG. 2 along line 3-3.

FIG. 3A is a detail view of a portion of FIG. 3.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the knife of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a section view of the knife of FIG. 5 along line 6-6.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the knife of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a section view of the knife of FIG. 8 along line 9-9.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the knife of FIG. 1 with the bladeremoved.

FIG. 11 is a front view of the knife of FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a section view of the knife of FIG. 11 along line 11-11.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the knife body of FIG. 1.

FIG. 14 is a front view of the knife body of FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a top view of the knife body of FIG. 13.

FIG. 16 is a bottom view of the knife body of FIG. 13.

FIG. 17 is a left-side view of the knife body of FIG. 13.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the blade of FIG. 1.

FIG. 19 is a front view of the blade of FIG. 18.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 23 is a front view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 24 is a rear view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 25 is a top view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 26 is a bottom view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 27 is a left-side view of the knife of FIG. 1.

FIG. 28 is a front view of a knife, according to an exemplaryembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1-27, a tool, shown as a knife 10, is shown accordingto an exemplary embodiment. The knife 10 includes a handle 12 having afirst end coupled to a replaceable implement, shown as, but not limitedto, a blade 14. The blade 14 is coupled to the handle 12 by a bladecarrier 16. The handle 12 and the blade carrier 16 form the knife body.

As shown in FIG. 1, according to an exemplary embodiment, the handle 12of the knife 10 is an elongated, contoured body that is configured to begrasped by the user of the knife 10. The handle 12 includes surfacefeatures, shown as ridges 20 (e.g., protrusions, raised portions, etc.)to facilitate a user's grip on the handle 12. The handle 12 may beshaped to include a contour or hollow 22 for a user's finger and a guard24 forward of the hollow 22. According to the exemplary embodiment shownin the FIGS. 1-4, the handle 12 also includes an opening shown as alanyard opening 26 located adjacent a second end of the handle 12.According to an exemplary embodiment, the handle may be molded as asingle body (e.g., injection molded from a polymer such as nylon orpolypropylene). According to another exemplary embodiment, the handlemay include a pair of handle sides that are coupled together withfasteners (e.g., screws).

Referring to FIGS. 18-19, according to an exemplary embodiment, theblade 14 is a standard, replaceable blade, shown as a size 60 scalpelblade. In other embodiments, other blades of different sizes and/ornon-standard blades are used. The blade 14 includes a first end orportion 29, a sharpened edge 30, and a second end or portion 32. Theblade 14 further includes a slot 34 extending through a body 35 of theblade 14. The slot 34 extends longitudinally along the blade 14. Theslot 34 is a standardized opening that is configured to allow the blade14 to be coupled to a wide variety of holders and includes a first,narrow portion 36 proximate the front end 37 of the slot and a second,wide portion 38 proximate the rear end 39 of the slot. As illustrated,the front end 37 is flat and the rear end 39 is rounded, though othershapes are possible. The wide portion 38 is an oblong opening with awidth 41 that is greater than the width 43 of the narrow portion 36. Asillustrated, an intermediate portion 45 of the slot is located betweenthe narrow portion 36 and the wide portion 38 and has a width 47 greaterthan the width 43 of the narrow portion and less than the width 41 ofthe wide portion 38. The slot 34 is offset towards the top edge 49 ofthe blade 14 (e.g., the side opposite the sharpened edge 30). The top ofthe slot 34 is spaced apart from the top edge 49 of the blade by adistance 51 less than a distance 53 between the bottom of the slot 34and a bottom portion 55 of the sharpened edge 30.

The blade 14 is coupled to the blade carrier 16. According to oneexemplary embodiment, shown in FIGS. 1-27, the carrier 16 is rigidlycoupled to the handle 12 (i.e., fixedly coupled so that the carrier 16does not pivot relative to the handle 12). For example, the handle 12may be overmolded onto the carrier 16 or the carrier 16 may be receivedin an opening in the handle 12 or between separate portions of thehandle 12 and coupled to the handle 12 with one or more fasteners (e.g.,rivets, screws, etc.) or another coupling mechanism, such as withadhesives, heat staking, welding, etc. The carrier 16 includes a mount57, a spring 40, a user interface, shown as a button 42 coupled to thespring 40, and a boss 44 extending outward from a first or mountingsurface 46 of the carrier 16.

As shown in FIGS. 15-17, the boss 44 is shaped to be received in theslot 34. The boss 44 includes a narrow portion 59 having a width 61 anda wide portion 63 having a width 81 greater than the width 61 andgreater than the width 43 of the narrow portion 36 of the slot 34. Thenarrow portion 59 is positioned between the mounting surface 46 and thewide portion 63. The boss 44 includes an overhang 52 including the frontend of the boss 44, which is separated from the mounting surface 46 by agap 54. The gap 54 is approximately as wide as the thickness of theblade 14 so that a portion of the body 35 of the blade 14 can bepositioned within the gap 54 when the blade 14 is secured to the carrier16. According to one exemplary embodiment, the boss 44 may be a separatebody coupled to the carrier 16 with an appropriate coupling member, suchas a rivet 50. According to another exemplary embodiment, the boss 44may be coupled to the carrier with another mechanical fastener, such asa screw or with an adhesive applied between the boss 44 and the mountingsurface 46. According to another exemplary embodiment, the boss 44 maybe integrally formed with the mount 57 of the carrier 16.

The spring 40 (e.g., cantilever spring, leaf spring, cam spring, springarm, etc.) is configured to selectively engage the blade 14 to couplethe blade 14 to the carrier 16 when in an extended position or disengagefrom the blade 14 in a retracted position to allow the blade 14 to beremoved from the carrier 16. Referring to FIG. 3A, the spring 40 isshown to have a first or front portion 60 coupled to the mount 57 of thecarrier 16, a second or rear portion 62 coupled to the button 42 andfree to move relative to the mount 57, and a middle portion 64 extendingbetween the front portion 60 and the rear portion 62. The middle portion64 is bent outward from the front portion 60 and the rear portion 62.The middle portion 64 includes a first leg 65 and a second leg 66 thatmeet at a vertex 67. The middle portion 64 is dimensioned to be receivedby the wide portion 38 of the slot 34 of the blade 14.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the spring 40 is coupled to themount 57 at the front portion 60 proximate the front end 33 of thespring 40. The front portion 60 is positioned within a cutout or slot 68(e.g., aperture, opening, pocket, compartment, slit, cut, hollow,recess, etc.) located in mount 57. According to an exemplary embodiment,the front portion 60 is coupled to the mount 57 with the same rivet 50that couples the boss 44 to the mount 57. The first leg 65 of the middleportion 64 is inclined at an angle 69 to the front portion 60 such thatthe middle portion 64 extends through an aperture or opening 70 in themount 57 to protrude outward from the mounting surface 46. The secondleg 66 is inclined at an angle 71 to the rear portion 62. According toan exemplary embodiment, the angle 71 is greater than the angle 69. Therear portion 62 of the spring 40 is attached to the button 42, such asto an arm 72 extending laterally from the button 42. The rear portion 62of the spring 40 includes a free end 31. The rear portion 62 of thespring 40 and the arm 72 are received in an aperture or opening 74(e.g., aperture, opening, pocket, compartment, slit, cut, hollow,recess, etc.) located in the mount 57. The button 42 extends through anopening 78 in the mount 57 (see FIG. 3) such that the button 42 extendsoutward from the mounting surface 46 of the carrier 16. The arm 72spaces the button 42 away from the rear portion 62 of the spring 40 sothat the button 42 does not contact the rear portion 32 of the blade 14when the blade 14 is attached to the carrier 16. This arrangement helpsto keep the carrier 16 relatively compact by providing adequate spacingbetween the moving parts (i.e., the blade 14, the spring 40, and thebutton 42). The spring 40, the button 42, the arm 72 may be separatecomponents attached to one another or one or more of these componentsmay be integrally formed with one or more of the other components. Insome embodiments, the button 42 and/or the arm 72 may be omitted. When aseparate button is omitted, the portion of the spring depressed by auser to move the spring may be considered to be the button and thisportion of the spring may be considered to be coupled to the rest of thespring.

The front portion 60 of the spring 40 has a generally fixed positionwith respect to the mount 57, while the position of the middle portion64 and the rear portion 62 of the spring 40 varies depending on theposition of the button 42. In other words, the position of rear portion62 and of the middle portion 64 varies with the amount that the button42 is depressed by the user. As shown in FIGS. 2-3A in a first position(e.g., rest position, engaged position, use position, etc.), thematerial properties of the spring 40 bias the spring 40 so that middleportion 64 extends through the spring opening 70, with at least aportion extending beyond the mounting surface 46. As shown in FIGS. 4-9in the second position (e.g., disengaged position, release position,etc.), the rear portion 62 moves out of the opening 74 as the userpushes the button 42 toward the mounting surface 46. As the button 42 isdepressed, the middle portion 64 is moved into the opening 70 and doesnot extend beyond the mounting surface 46 when the button 42 is fullydepressed. This downward travel of the spring 40 is limited by a stop 76extending across the opening 74. When the user releases the button 42,the spring 40 is biased to return to the first position.

The blade 14 is releaseably secured to the blade carrier 16 byinteraction between the boss 44 and the spring 40 of the blade carrier16 and the slot 34 of the blade 14. Actuating the button 42, allows auser to release the blade 14 from the blade carrier 16.

In a first mode of operation, the blade 14 is secured to the carrier 16by pushing the blade 14 against the mounting surface 46 such that boss44 is received in the wide portion 38 of the slot 34 (see FIGS. 7-9).The surface of the blade 14 (e.g., the surface of the body 35) pushesthe protruding middle portion 64 of the spring 40 down into the springopening 70. The blade 14 is then moved rearward toward the handle 12,moving the boss 44 into the narrow portion 36 of the slot 34 (see FIGS.4-6). The blade 14 is fully seated when the front end 37 of the slot 34engages (i.e., contacts) the boss 44. The front end 37 of the slot 34 ispositioned in the gap 54 under the overhang 52 of the boss 44. Thecontact between the boss 44 and the front end 37 of the slot 34 retainsthe blade 14 adjacent the mounting surface 46 of the carrier 16. Thecontact between the boss 44 and the front end 37 of the slot 34 alsoprovides a stop that prevents further movement of the blade 14 towardthe handle 12. Also, the narrow portion 59 of the boss 44 is positionedin the narrow portion 36 of the slot 34 so that the wide portion 63 ofthe boss 44 overlaps a portion of the body 35 of the blade 14 adjacentthe narrow portion 36 of the slot 34. This helps to secure the blade 14to the carrier 16. When the boss 44 is positioned within the narrowportion 36 of the slot 34, the wide portion 38 of the slot 34 is alignedwith the spring opening 70, allowing the middle portion 64 of the spring40 to move into the spring opening 70 such that the second leg 66protrudes beyond the mounting surface 46 of the carrier 16 (see FIGS.1-3A). In this position, the second leg 66 contacts the rear end 39 ofthe slot 34, preventing movement of the blade 14 in away from the handle12. The position of the blade release button 42 relative to the boss 44and the offset position of the slot 34 prevents the blade 14 from beinginstalled upside down. The button 42 includes a bottom edge 73 spacedapart from a top edge 75 of the spring 40 by a distance 77. The distance77 is less than the distance 53 so that the blade 14 can only be securedto the mount 57 with the top edge 49 of the blade 14 adjacent the bottomedge 73 of the button 42. In an exemplary embodiment, the distance 77 issubstantially the same as the distance 51. A removable cover or sheathmay be provided to protect and cover the blade 14 when not in use.

In a second mode of operation, the blade 14 may be removed from thecarrier 16 by reversing the above steps. As the user depresses thebutton 42, the rear portion 62 of the spring 40 is moved relative to themount 57 through the interconnection of the rear portion 62 of thespring 40 and the arm 72 (see FIGS. 4-6). The second leg 66 is movedinto the spring opening 70 until it no longer contacts the rear end 39of the slot 34. The blade 14 is therefore free to slide along themounting surface 46 of the carrier 16 in a direction away from thehandle 12 until the boss 44 is moved from the narrow portion 36 into thewide portion 38 of the slot 34 (see FIGS. 7-9). The blade 14 may then beremoved from the carrier 16 (see FIGS. 10-12).

Referring now to FIG. 28, in some embodiments, the knife 10 may have ablade carrier 16 that pivots relative to the handle 12, such that theblade carrier 16 and the blade 14 may be folded into the interior of thehandle 12 when not in use. With the carrier 16 and the blade 14 foldedinto the handle 12, the blade 14 is protected and the sharpened edge 30is concealed within the interior of the handle 12. According to anexemplary embodiment, the carrier 16 is coupled to the handle 12 at apivot point formed by, for example, a screw that is received by a membersuch as a barrel with internal threads. The carrier 16 rotates about anaxis 80 passing through the screw and barrel or other member couplingthe carrier 16 to the handle 12. A thumb stud 79 is coupled to thecarrier 16 to provide an interface for the user to move the carrier 16between extended and folded positions. According to an exemplaryembodiment, the knife 10 may include a locking mechanism 82 that retainsthe carrier 16 in the extended position or the folded position. A usermay actuate the locking mechanism 82 (e.g., press down on the lockingmechanism 82) to release the carrier 16 and allow the carrier 16 torotate freely about the axis 80.

The components depicted in the figures are constructed of materialsknown in the knife arts. The handle may be constructed from a metallicmaterial (such as a titanium or titanium alloy) or a polymer material(e.g. polypropylene, nylon, etc.). The spring (such as spring 40) may beconstructed from a stainless steel alloy and also may have a springtemper to maintain the proper biasing forces discussed above.Additionally, according to one exemplary embodiment, the spring is of aconfiguration and material chosen to match the desired resistance forthe button. The various fasteners, screws and other components may bemade from various stainless steel alloys. According to other exemplaryembodiments, other suitable materials may be used for the variouscomponents of the folding knife.

While the detailed drawings and specific examples given describe variousexemplary embodiments of the knife, they serve the purpose ofillustration only. It is to be understood that the invention is notlimited in its application to the details of construction and thearrangements of components set forth in the preceding description orillustrated in the drawings. Furthermore, other substitutions,modifications, changes, and omissions may be made in the design,operating conditions, and arrangements of the exemplary embodimentswithout departing from the scope of the invention as expressed in theappended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A skinning knife, comprising: a handle; a bladecarrier coupled to the handle, the blade carrier including a mounthaving a mounting surface, a boss extending outward from the mountingsurface, and a spring including a front portion, a middle portion, and arear portion, the front portion secured to the mount proximate a frontend of the spring, the middle portion bent outward from the frontportion and the rear portion, and the rear portion including a free endof the spring movable relative to the mount; and a blade including asharpened edge, a body, and a slot formed through the body, the slotextends in a longitudinal direction from a front end to a rear end andincludes a narrow portion of a first width and a wide portion of asecond width greater than the first width, the narrow portion includesthe front end of the slot and the wide portion includes the rear end ofthe slot; wherein the blade is releaseably secured to the blade carrierby interaction between the boss and the spring of the blade carrier andthe slot of the blade.
 2. The skinning knife of claim 1, furthercomprising: a button coupled to the rear portion of the spring andconfigured for actuation by a user to release the blade from the bladecarrier.
 3. The skinning knife of claim 2, wherein the middle portion ofthe spring includes a first leg and a second leg, with the first legbent at a first angle relative to the front portion of the spring andthe second leg bent at a second angle relative to the rear portion ofthe spring.
 4. The skinning knife of claim 3, wherein the boss includesa narrow portion of a third width and a wide portion of a fourth widthgreater than the first width and the third width, the narrow portionpositioned between the mounting surface and the wide portion; andwherein the narrow portion of the boss is positioned in the narrowportion of the slot so that the wide portion of the boss overlaps aportion of the body of the blade adjacent the narrow portion of theslot.
 5. The skinning knife of claim 4, wherein the blade includes a topedge and a bottom portion of the sharpened edge, the top edge is spacedapart from a top of the slot by a first distance and the bottom portionof the sharpened edge is spaced apart from a bottom of the slot by asecond distance greater than the first distance; wherein the buttonincludes a bottom edge spaced apart from a top edge of the spring by athird distance less than the second distance so that the blade can onlybe secured to the mount with the top edge of the blade adjacent thebottom edge of the button.
 6. The skinning knife of claim 2, furthercomprising an arm coupling the button to the rear portion of the spring,wherein the arm spaces the button away from the rear portion of thespring such that the button does not contact a rear portion of theblade.
 7. The skinning knife of claim 1, further comprising a buttoncoupled to the rear portion of the spring and configured for actuationby a user to release the blade from the blade carrier, wherein the bladeincludes a top edge and a bottom portion of the sharpened edge, the topedge is spaced apart from a top of the slot by a first distance and thebottom portion of the sharpened edge is spaced apart from a bottom ofthe slot by a second distance greater than the first distance; whereinthe button includes a bottom edge spaced apart from a top edge of thespring by a third distance less than the second distance so that theblade can only be secured to the mount with the top edge of the bladeadjacent the bottom edge of the button.
 8. The skinning knife of claim7, wherein the mount includes an aperture, and wherein the middleportion of the spring is positioned within the aperture.
 9. The skinningknife of claim 8, wherein the mount includes a stop extending across theaperture, and wherein the stop is configured to limit travel of thespring.
 10. The skinning knife of claim 7, further comprising an armcoupling the button to the rear portion of the spring, wherein the armspaces the button away from the rear portion of the spring such that thebutton does not contact a rear portion of the blade.
 11. The skinningknife of claim 1, wherein the middle portion of the spring includes afirst leg and a second leg, with the first leg bent at a first anglerelative to the front portion of the spring and the second leg bent at asecond angle relative to the rear portion of the spring.
 12. Theskinning knife of claim 11, wherein the first angle is less than thesecond angle.
 13. The skinning knife of claim 12, wherein the mountincludes an aperture, and wherein the middle portion of the spring ispositioned within the aperture.
 14. The skinning knife of claim 13,wherein the mount includes a stop extending across the aperture, andwherein the stop is configured to limit travel of the spring.
 15. Theskinning knife of claim 14, further comprising a button coupled to therear portion of the spring and configured for actuation by a user torelease the blade from the blade carrier, wherein the blade includes atop edge and a bottom portion of the sharpened edge, the top edge isspaced apart from a top of the slot by a first distance and the bottomportion of the sharpened edge is spaced apart from a bottom of the slotby a second distance greater than the first distance; wherein the buttonincludes a bottom edge spaced apart from a top edge of the spring by athird distance less than the second distance so that the blade can onlybe secured to the mount with the top edge of the blade adjacent thebottom edge of the button.
 16. The skinning knife of claim 1, whereinthe mount includes an aperture, and wherein the middle portion of thespring is positioned within the aperture.
 17. The skinning knife ofclaim 16, wherein the mount includes a stop extending across theaperture, and wherein the stop is configured to limit travel of thespring.
 18. The skinning knife of claim 1, wherein the blade carrier ispivotally coupled to the handle.
 19. The skinning knife of claim 1,wherein the blade carrier is rigidly coupled to the handle.
 20. Theskinning knife of claim 1, wherein the boss includes a narrow portion ofa third width and a wide portion of a fourth width greater than thefirst width and the third width, the narrow portion positioned betweenthe mounting surface and the wide portion; and wherein the narrowportion of the boss is positioned in the narrow portion of the slot sothat the wide portion of the boss overlaps a portion of the body of theblade adjacent the narrow portion of the slot.